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We now officially in fall! Yay! The fall solstice just passed, and that means that begins the countdown on our warm & sunny days. Here are a few things you should do (aka things I’ve did) before fall is gone and winter is here!
Living in a city without many natural landscapes to escape to is challenging for me. I don’t have a car nor do I know how to drive, so though there are many places upstate to go, not being able to drive seventy limits those options. However, I am not easily deterred. I need nature to maintain my sanity, so I found some cheat-codes to connect with nature if you don’t have the time, or money or ability to take a trip upstate. I began volunteering at a community garden.

I also took a hike to Wave Hill to check out their botanical gardens. It was so peaceful and serene. I felt as if I wasn’t even in NYC anymore. I won’t do much writing about it, and let the photos speak for themselves.

Thus far, I have been keeping up with my goal of being outside a lot, and am looking forward to even more exploration while the weather holds up!
What about you? Have you been maintaining your goals you set for this semester?

After reading Ashley’s goals for this upcoming semester, I felt inspired to write my own. She’s so right about the beginning of the semester. This summer I realized how much I NEED nature in my life to feel like a sane person, and keep me grounded. I also acquired a few new jobs *yay* and have to weave all of my life together somehow.

– Use the gym + free movement classes provided for FIT more often (I mean, we are all paying for it, may as well use it to our full advantage.)

– Immerse myself in all the incredible nature New York *state, not city* has to offer.

This past Sunday I went to this Dance Therapy Healing workshop. I spent all day dancing, moving, talking and crying with an amazing group of women.

The workshop, Courageous Creativity, is all about unblocking your creativity. Tatiana Zamir, a trained dance and massage therapist, encouraged this through simple breathing and body awareness exercises. We also thought back to time whens our creativity was not valued or recognized. And then we danced that feeling of unworthiness out, and then danced in a way that reclaimed our sense of ideas and voices mattering. It was therapeutic and healing, especially since moving and being in your body is an art form that many of us don’t tap into. Our bodies retain all the stress we put it through, both physically and emotionally, so it only makes sense for us to turn back into our bodies for answers and guidance.

A little solitary movement after the workshop.

Dance is something I love. I use it as a healing mechanism all the time, but to do it with a group of other women is quite special. During this workshop, I realized some truths that I have to deal with in order to move forward with all of my creative endeavors. I am excited to put them into action! Right before the beginning of school was the perfect time for these realizations.

In between my dance performance, my internship with the Laundromat Project, and all the summer excitement, I was able to sneak away for a bit to journey to the Caribbean. A close friend of mines spent this past semester studying at University of Puerto Rico. Towards the end of the semester she got a internship and spent a few more months on the island.

If you haven’t ever been, let me just tell you, Puerto Rico is beautiful. The nature is majestic, the people are unbelievably kind and open, and the culture is vibrant. While I was there I went night kayaking to the Bioluminescent Bay, met a local who showed me this secret beach cave, danced salsa until 3 am, played Dominos until 1, ate lots of fresh picked fruit and monfongo *popular food in the Caribbean*, and felt to calm and rejuvenated upon my return home.

Apart of this calmness was being by the water, though another part was because I had gotten used to operating on island time. In Puerto Rico the transpiration is slow, and I mean really slow. There’s no real set schedule for buses, and some would only come once hourly, if you were lucky.
The slow pace took time getting used to, but once I released my need for everything to happen immediately, I began enjoying the pace. I was present and aware in a way that’s hard for me to find while in the city. Since my trip I’ve been reflecting on how to bring this same awareness to my daily life.

Joanna & I

What about you? What have you experience this summer that you want to bring into your fall?

This past week was the end of my summer internship at the Laundromat Project! It was incredible internship and I’m so glad that I did it! I’ve made new friends, met people in my field and was added to the LP’s list serve. This is a huge deal because now I will access to a variety of different opportunities that I never would known about it before.

During our graduation lunch we received a number of gifts, one of which I want to share with you all! All of the interns were gifted with the book “Work On Purpose,” which is about “the stories of five social entrepreneurs and their journeys from struggle and uncertainty to significance and success.”

The reoccurring adage of the book is “Heart + Head = Hustle.”

These stories are important to hear because for many people the road to meaningful careers isn’t always a straight path. Hearing about the winding paths of several successful and fulfilled people is reassuring. In addition, the book is written in an easy to follow way. with stunning photos, and a variety of activities in the book to supplement the chapters.

I haven’t made my way through the entire book, but I foresee it as a tool that I will continue to draw on, especially with graduation right around the corner. I encourage you all to check it out!

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